Funding opportunity
Two pension funds, ABP of the Netherlands and OMERS of Canada, have set up a joint investment program INKEF Capital, to invest in start-ups in both countries.
INKEF (Investing in the Knowledge Economy of the Future) is a 15 year programme that will invest €200 million on behalf of the two pension funds.
The intention is that investing in high tech start-ups will not only make returns for the pension holders of ABP and OMERS, but also foster the development of high-level knowledge economies in the two countries.
INKEF Capital says it will also distinguish itself from other investors by its long-term investment horizon and through its active mentoring of the start-ups it backs.
The fund says its long-term investment strategy is especially suitable for pension funds, fitting both the long-term characteristics of pension funds’ liabilities and with the connected long-term investment horizon used by them.
ABP (Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP) and OMERS (Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System) expect to achieve an attractive return, in line with the risk profile of these investments. Both partners regard collaboration between pension funds in programmes for direct investment as a promising new strategic option, both in this asset class as in others.
INKEF Capital will invest in new companies and technologies from an early stage of their development onwards, through a Dutch and a Canadian investment company. ABP and OMERS will each provide half of the funding for the programme. The initial portfolio will naturally be weighted towards early stage companies which will mature over the fifteen year term. Deal flow will come from various sources, including technology transfer offices of universities, informal investors, regional funds and from spin-offs of new technologies by existing companies.
ABP is the pension fund for employers and employees in service of the Dutch government and the educational sector, while OMERS is one of Canada’s largest pension funds, providing retirement benefits to more than 400,000 members.
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